Composite truss deck



Feb. 6, 1962 A. TROUTNER COMPOSITE TRUSS DECK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 10, 1958 INVENTOR flrthur Z Ii'ouiner ATTORNEY Feb. 6, 1962 A. L. TROUTNER 3,019,491

COMPOSITE muss DECK Filed Feb. 10, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR flrtllur Trau ATTORNEY United States Patent ()1 Filed Feb. 10, 1958, Ser. No. 714,284 6 Claims. (Cl. 20-1) This invention relates to a composite truss deck and, more particularly, to a truss deck wherein the top and bottom chords are formed of lumber and the web members are pre-formed of metal rods.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a continuous structural stress skin deck with wood chords that function as a double floor, or a floor and ceiling, or deck and ceiling when assembled with metal rod Web members. A particular object is to utilize lumber, preferably with tongue and groove edge joints, pinned togather and joined to the webs by steel rod shear developers integral with the web members.

These and other objects will be apparent from the following specification and drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a portion of partly assembled composite truss deck, and showing the mode of assembly;

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross section through a portion of an assembled deck;

FIG. 3 is a transverse cross section along the line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4 to 7, inclusive, are diagrammatic illustrations of some of the possible applications of the invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view corresponding to FIG. 1, but illustrating a portion of a partly assembled composite truss deck utilizing a modified form of webbing;

FIG. 9 is an end elevation showing one of the webbing elements with a shear pin in place; and

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the element shown in FIG. 9, and showing the shear pin in cross section.

Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numerals denote similar elements, the preferred form of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, inclusive, wherein the composite truss deck =2 consists of a top chords 4 formed preferably of tongue and groove boards 6, 8 and 10, the bottom chords 12 being similarly formed by tongue and groove boards 14, 16 and 18. Each steel webbing 20 consists of a zigzag bent rod 22 having a series of reverse bends forming angles A, and transverse steel rods 24 extending transversely to the length of rods 22 and welded as at 25 at the angles. Rods 24 are shear developers and engage in pre-drilled sockets 26 extending inwardly from the edges of the planks.

The mode of assembly is best ascertainable from FIG. 1 wherein it will be apparent that the planks and webbing are assembled by first driving similar ends of the transverse rods 24 into pre-drilled sockets 26 spaced along corresponding edges of top and bottom boards, such as boards 6 and 14, thereafter, the next adjacent boards 8 and 16 are fitted with their pre-drilled sockets 26 over the oppositely projecting ends of transverse rods 24 and driven tightly up against the boards 4 and 14. In order to make a tight joint 19, the edges of the boards may be slightly recessed adjacent sockets 26 in order to accommodate the bent ends of rods 22. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the second webbing assembly 20 is ready to have the ends of transverse rods 24 driven into preformed sockets 26 in the edges of boards 8 and 16. This procedure may be continued until a composite structure of sufiicient area is produced.

FIG. 4 illustrates one of the possible applications of the invention to produce a gabled deck 2a having top and bottom chords 4a and 14a tapering towards one another and with the webbing rod 22a bent and dimensioned to accommodate the tapering chords. In FIG. the invention is diagrammatically illustrated as applied i to a two-hinge arch deck wherein the top and bottom chords 4!) and 1412 are formed of pre-bent boards and wherein the webbing 2012 has been bent according to the curve of the arch. In FIG. 6, the webbing 20c is illustrated as applied to a three-hinge arch deck 20 and in FIG. 7 the structure 2d utilizing webbing 20a. is essentially that illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, inclusive, but disposed vertically to provide either a bearing or nonbearing wall of partition.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the composite truss deck 2 is generally similar to that shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 in that tongue and groove boards, such as those designated 6 and 14' are used to build the top and bottom chords denoted generally 4' and 12', respectively. In the modified embodiment, however, webbing 20' is an assembly of similar steel rods 21 having flattened opposite ends 23. Transverse shear pins 24' engage in holes 25 formed in the flattened ends 23 of rods 21 and engage in the sockets in the form of predrilled transverse holes 26 extending transversely of the lengths of boards 6 and 14'. The edges of the boards are preferably routed out, as shown at 27, to accommodate the rod ends 23.

The assembly of the modified form of the invention is similar to the first embodiment previously detailed except in that webbing 20' may be supplied in. a smaller package, consisting of separate rods 21 and transverse shear pins 24, and assembled on the job.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that angles A may be formed of 45 bends in rods 22 so as to provide a saw-tooth configuration, or bends at other angles may be used to meet the stress requirements of the particular structure to which the invention may be adapted. In all forms of the invention, the resultant structure is characterized by its great strength, lightness and economy of construction.

The invention is not limited to the details illustrated and described herein, but is intended to cover all substitutions, modifications and equivalents within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. \A composite truss deck structure, comprising a pair of spaced chord members each comprising at least one pair of c0-planar wooden boards having contiguous longitudinal edges and having transverse bores in the material thereof extending inwardly therein from the contiguous edges thereof, the bores of one board being aligned with the bores of the other board of the pair, metal shear pins having opposite end portions respectively disposed in the aligned bores and forming metallic connections between the pairs of boards, said pins having intermediate portions disposed between the contiguous edges of the boards, metal webbing of zigzag configuration connecting the chord members, said Webbing defining a series of reverse angles with the apexes of the angles respectively disposed between the contiguous edges of the pairs of boards, and means connecting the webbing at the apexes of the angles thereof to said shear pins, the contiguous edge of at least one board in each pair having indentation means adjacent the outer ends of the bores for accommodating said webbing in the regions of the angle apexes.

2. The combination claimed in claim 1, and means continuously joining said pairs of boards along their contiguous edges between the bores.

3. The combination claimed in claim 2, the last-named means comprising tongue-and-groove joints.

4. The combination claimed in claim 2, said metal webbing comprising a series of straight metal rods disposed in said zigzag configuration with the ends of one rod overlapping adjacent ends of adjacent rods, the means connecting said webbing to said pins comprising eyes in Patented Feb. '6, 1962 the overlapping ends of rods, said eyes engaging around the pins.

5. A composite truss deck structure comprising, in combination, a pair of spaced panels each formed of at least one pair of boards disposed edge-to-edge, and a webbing comprising an elongate metal rod having a series of reverse bends along the length thereof and a plurality of transverse rods respectively welded to said elongate rod at the outer sides of the reverse bends thereof and extending transversely to the length thereof, said boards having a series of sockets spaced along the length thereof comprising bores extending inwardly from the edges of the boards, said transverse rods respectively engaging in said sockets, at least one of said boards having indentations adjacent said sockets for accommodating said elongate rods in the regions of the transverse bends.

6. The combination claimed in claim 5, said boards having tongue and groove joints continuously joining adjacent edges thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Pierson Jan. 16, 1906 Johnson July 13, 190 9 Buskirk Mar. 15, 1910 Hourd May 9, 1911 Wagner Sept. 27, 1921 Beierbach Apr. 3, 1923 Lucy Feb. 3, 1931 Powell Aug. 20, 1940' Atcheson Nov. 4, 194 1 Blaski Mar. 13, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain 1892 Great Britain 1920 Australia 1947 Switzerland 1950 Switzerland 1957 

